Director Anthony Russo’s Pasadena Dynasty Mansion – Many U.S. real estate watchers gripe about the “overpriced” current market, but there are still decent property deals to be had. Pasadena’s fabled Dynasty mansion is a prime example of sublime residential bang for buck — that is, if one considers any $15 million house a bargain.

Officially christened the Arden Villa but far more commonly known by its soapy nickname, the Dynasty mansion was built in 1913 by acclaimed architectural firm Marston & Van Pelt for railroad heir and mining tycoon William Lennon Jewett. Tucked away in a particularly ritzy corner of Pasadena just steps from the even ritzier city of San Marino, the estate is considered one of the area’s architectural gems, remarkably well-preserved despite some modern interior upgrades and a tumultuous ownership history.

The 106-year-old villa has changed hands many times over the years, suffering through at least two foreclosures and a long period of vacancy. After Jewett’s passing, it eventually came to be owned by finance guru Coleman Morton, a pioneer in the asset management sector, and later by David Zander, a prolific producer of TV commercials.

In the mid-90s, the house was briefly owned by a somewhat shadowy Mainland China-based businessman named Geoffrey Ren, who — according to records — lost the property to foreclosure in 1997. Nonetheless, in May 2013 Ren forked out a whopping $28 million in a highly leveraged off-market deal to buy back the estate, an amount that remains the most ever paid for a home in L.A.’s San Gabriel or San Fernando Valleys.

For unknown reasons, Ren never moved into the property following his 2013 splurge, and the high-maintenance compound has been left vacant in the six years since. Within three years, Ren again defaulted on his mortgage payments; records show house has been in and out of foreclosure since 2017, when it was first put up for sale with a $28 million ask.